BURNABY, BC – Underneath a boiling hot sun, Real Monarchs came back for a 3-2 victory that cooled off white-hot Whitecaps FC 2 at Swangard Stadium on Sunday.
Monarch centre back Maximus Jennings lived up to his first name. His dagger header in the 89th minute was the game-winner in a topsy-turvy match.
WFC2 head coach Ricardo Clark made a few changes to the team. MLS NEXT Pro leading scorer Nelson Pierre was not available, along with Antoine Coupland, as both were with the MLS squad in Los Angeles.
Clark welcomed back two young attackers: Rayan Elloumi, who had recorded three goals and three assists in his last two WFC2 appearances, and Johnny Selemani.
The Monarchs struck first early. Defender Ruben Mesalles finished off a pinballing cross with a clinical volley at the near post, past WFC2 goalkeeper Isaac Francoeur.
Francoeur, 17, made his professional debut after being called up from the Whitecaps FC BMO MLS Academy.
On the next free kick, the teenage keeper redeemed himself with remarkable reflexes – a leaping punch that pushed a Luca Moisa cracking attempt over the crossbar.
As the Blue and White have done numerous times through this past month of positive results, they put their heads down for a renewed effort. By the quarter-hour, midfielder Jackson Castro juked a defender deep in the danger area, and put a ball ahead for centre back Mark O’Neill.
O’Neill leapt skywards – he nodded home under outstretched Monarchs keeper Max Kerkvliet – to level the match at 1-1.
Meanwhile, Castro continued his brilliant run as WFC2’s premier set-up man. The 22-year-old American international leads the club with six assists.
Francoeur again rose to the occasion before the half ended. He alertly backtracked across his crease to snag an Aiden Hezarkhani low strike from the top of the box.
After play restarted, Whitecaps FC 2 defender Daniel Russo sprinted down the left wing to put a pinpoint cross for an onrushing Rayan Elloumi. He jumped to guide a powerful header towards the far post, but Monarchs keeper Kerkvliet bravely denied the point-blank chance.
WFC2 switched tactics to the right wing, where defender Luca Chen laid a through ball for Castro. Instead of a selfless pass, the assist leader put his head down, and raced past a defender. Castro’s 15-yard strike led to a 2-1 lead.
Six minutes later, the Monarchs equalized from a Luca Moisa smash to the top corner. The momentum had shifted. Before stoppage time, a Hezarkhani corner kick led to Jennings’s header that eluded Francoeur for the decisive goal.
MATCH DETAILS
Referee: Saman Soltani
Scoring Summary
8’ – SLC – Ruben Mesalles
14’ – VAN – Mark O’Neill (Jackson Castro)
67’ – VAN – Jackson Castro (Luca Chen)
73’ – SLC – Luca Moisa (Zack Farnsworth)
89’ – SLC – Maximus Jennings (Aiden Hezarkhani)
Cautions
31’ – SLC – Zack Farnsworth
42’ – SLC – Giovanni Calderón
84’ – SLC – Luca Moisa
Statistics
Possession: VAN 43% – SLC 57%
Shots: VAN 10 – SLC 17
Shots on Goal: VAN 5 – SLC 7
Saves: VAN 4 – SLC 3
Fouls: VAN 9 – SLC 10
Offsides: VAN 2 – SLC 6
Corners: VAN 4 – SLC 11
Whitecaps FC 2
80.Isaac Francoeur; 62.Luca Chen (66.Sahil Deo 73’), 53.Mark O'Neill ©, 46.Deylen Vellios, 54.Daniel Russo; 68.Yuma Tsuji, 44.Jackson Castro; 41.Nikola Djordjevic, 64.Mateo Clark (93.Antoine Nehme 84’); 63.Johnny Selemani (73.Ryder Sewell 89’), 75.Rayan Elloumi
Substitutes not used
99.Sam Rogers, 48.Adrián Pelayo, 71.Carson Rassak
Real Monarchs
24.Max Kerkvliet; 67.Wesley Charpie, 55.Giovanni Calderón, 32.Zack Farnsworth (52.Maximus Jennings 74’), 77.Ruben Mesalles; 40.Omar Marquez (61.Izahi Amparo 74’), 34.Luca Moisa (37.Luis Rivera 87’); 39.Aiden Hezarkhani; 87.Brayan Sandoval (89.Dominic Berrios HT), 30.Owen Anderson; 80.Grayson Carter (56.Ousman Touray 63’)
Substitutes not used
49.Bennett Ewing, 76.Liam O’Gara
